1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for delivering information electronically, more particularly, for enabling expert Service Providers to deliver, and charge for, advice to consumers.
2. Description of Prior Art
The World Wide Web is currently a subject of intense and rapidly growing interest. The World Wide Web is composed of interconnected data sources that are accessible to computer Users through data-communication networks such as the Internet. The data available on the World Wide Web has been assembled by private individuals, commercial companies, government agencies, and special interest organizations. Much of this assembled information is organized into Web pages. A Web site is a collection of Web pages (and possibly other data which, together with Web pages, are generically referred to as Web components) offered by a sponsoring entity, herein referred to as the site owner.
Large Web sites are typically organized hierarchically. For example, corporate Web sites often consist of smaller Web sites, each providing information about a business unit of the parent company.
The Web site itself resides on one or more server hosts. Web components stored on the server host are offered to Users of the World Wide Web through a software program known as a Web server. A network User uploads or downloads data from a Web site through a browser, a software program running on the client host. The browser establishes contact with the Web server and issues a request for data stored on the server host. This results in data from the server host being downloaded into the browser. This data is typically a HyperText document specifying information required by the browser to display the Web page (i.e., formatting information specifying the structure of the page, or URLs of images that are to be placed on the page), embedded client software programs which run inside the browser (e.g., Java bytecode), and other content to be downloaded to the client computer or displayable through client software programs that add to the browser's functionality (sometimes referred to as “browser plug-ins”).
Currently, Web pages are typically defined using HyperText Markup Language (“HTML”). HTML provides a standard set of tags that define how a Web page is to be displayed. When a User indicates to the browser to display a Web page, the browser sends a request to the server computer system to transfer to the client computer system an HTML document that defines the Web page. When the requested HTML document is received by the client computer system, the browser displays the Web page as defined by the HTML document. The HTML document contains various tags that control the displaying of text, graphics, controls, and other features. The HTML document may contain URLs of other Web pages available on that server computer system or other server computer systems.
As more and more demand, and the use of technology enter peoples' lives, there exists a great need for people to be able to contact experts and Service Providers easily and quickly on any topic or subject via the Internet. While many companies have web pages and/or telephone support lines, most do not offer the most convenient and integrated way for potential clients to reach them, nor a simple, automated, yet comprehensive method for charging for their services.
There is a need for a system, especially an Internet-based system, that will enable customers to easily and quickly connect to Service Providers from Internet-based icons located in a broad collection of vehicles such as individual websites, website directories, emails, or online advertisement banners, so that these Service Providers can reach and assist these customers with their questions, in return for fair and agreed-upon payment.
There is still much room for improvement in the art.